Sorting device.



W. H. ZELTNER.. soRTlNG DEVICE. APLICTION FILED OCT. i4, 1916.

Patented Sept. 10, 1918.

A 7TOHNEV INE NcRRls PETERS co., Pham.: ITHO.. WASNINGNN. n E4WILLIiiivrY ZELTNER, ore NEW YORKFN. Y.

sRTINe nnvrcfsf The present invention relates tol improvements insertingdevices, and particularly for use'in'the sorting of beer bottles,y milkbottles or the like; At. present these bottles,

after being` used, are .brought to aV` clearing house in great variety,and there they are sorted andY returned to their respective brew eriesor dairies. This has been done almost entirely by hand, the sorter afterfhe has sorted several bottles of' a particular owner, carrying these tothe boX intended therefor, which must necessarily beat some distancebecause of the number of different owners, and because of thecomparatively large space required for the collected bottles ofdifferent owners. rIhis required a great many steps, much time and thepercentage of breakage was relatively high.

The present invention therefore, is intended to obviate thesedifficulties, and provide assorting and conveying means by which thebottles for the different owners may be safely conveyed to a place ofdistribution where they are placed in the proper boxes therefor by ahelper. In this manner the assorter may remain seated if desired, and agreat many more bottles may be assorted than was heretofore possible ina given time. It is also an object to such a device in which the bottlespassing therethrough will be prevented from breaking or chipping bycontact with each other.

lVith these and other objects in view, my invention is shown in theaccompanying drawings, and will be hereinafter more fully described withreference thereto and finally pointed out in the claim.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is an end view of my improved device,

Fig. 2 is a side view Jthereof,

Fig. 3 is an enlarged transverse sectional view of the chute members.

Fig. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view, and l Fig. 5 is a top Viewthereof.

Fig. 6 represents one end of one of the Application med october 14,'191aseriailNo. 125,572. l

I specification of Letters Patent. Patented' Sept.'v 101191S chutesprovided at the distributionend withy a safetylholding device.

Fig. 7 represents a' transverse' section ofone of therollers providedwith 'a cushion of rubber or other material.

Similar reference characters indicate corresponding -parts throughoutthe several fig'- f ures of the drawings.

Referring to the drawings, and-more par-#l ticularly to F igsjl and 2thereof,l my improved* conveyer and assorter,co1nprising*a plurality ofinclined shelves'l 10, supported between theV upright ends 11 and 12,-and upon the shelves areffmounted a' plurality of inclined chutes 13.-The number of chutes may -be varied, and also the` number of shelvesaccording to the requirements'ofltheparticu ar. `clearing house,A eachbrewery vor dairy whose bottles are to be assorted having' one or more'chutes,`dependingon-'the val'- ume of their business. The length of thechutes is such as to reach from the place of assorting to the place ofdistribution. A boX 14, containing the various bottles is shown at theassorting end, and a boX 15 for the assorted bottles is shown at thedistributing end.

The chutes comprise oppositely disposed and spaced angle bars 16 and 17,forming base pieces which are secured to the shelves, extending thelength of the chute. Between these bars 16 and 17 there are rotatablymounted in spaced relation, a plurality of roller bearings 1S, thesebeing about an inch and xa half apart. Upright side irons 19 and 2O aresecured at each side to the bars 16 and 17, at intervals along the chuteby bolts 21 which may also serve to additionally secure the chutes totheV shelves, these side ironsv being bent in inclined directionupwardly and outwardly from the said bars, and vertically as at 22 fromthe said inclined portion. Strips 23 and 24, preferably of wood, aresecured at each side to the side irons 19 and 20 by`countersunk screws25, and serve with the roller bearings to form a channel for thebottles.

The various chutes are joined together at the portions 22 of the sideirons by rivets 26, thereby forming a thoroughly rigid structure whichmay be readily added to at any time as need demands. Y

The side strips hold the bottle upon the roller bearings it will beseen, preventing them from falling off at the sides. The slightyinclinati the Chu/teg permits' the bottles, a;

move by force of gravity, but their move-A ment is'retarded sufficientlyby the roller bearings as to prevent onebottle froinhit ting the nextwith sufficient force to chip or break the same. The sorting, whichrequires careful examination of each bottle, proceeds at a muchslowerrate than the distribution so that the helper may readily takecare of all of the bottles as they emerge from the chutes. The `chutesare preferably provided at their distribution endsl with holdingmeanswhich prevent the bottles from falling. Any suitable means vfor thispurpose may be emyployed. For instance, each chute may be provided atits lower end at its top with a transverse bar 30 hinged at one sideofthe chute and adapted when closed to engage the other side thereof.

The roller bearings in addition to retarding the movement of thebottles, also pre-V Y soft material adapted toform a cushion surface andprevent breakage of the bottles,

Gopinel of this patent may be obtained for fiveV cents, each, byaddressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Ihave illustrated a preferred and satisfactory form of my invention',but it is obvious that changes may be made therein within the spirit andscope thereof, as defined in the appended claim. Y

I claim:

' An assorting device for bottles comprising astan'd havlnoF a series ofinclined shelves disposed one zbove another, a series of 1nclinedskeleton chutes disposed side by side in parallel relation on eachshelf, the bottoms of.said chutes having a series of spaced transverserollers and the sides thereof co1nprisingupwardly and outwardly inclinedyieldable irons and longitudinal strips se'- cured to said inclinedirons and forming flaring troughs into which bottlesof dierent brandsrespectively may be safely thrown and through which they will slideinendwise relation to individual receptacles.

Iii-testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention, I have signedmy name in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

l WILLIAM I-I. ZEL'INER.

Witnesses: Y Y

CHAs. ANDREWS, HERMAN WAssMER.

, v Washington, D. C.

